Redemption
by countrypanther14
Summary: Lance's redemption story. Let's just leave it at that.
1. Chapter 1

**Yeah...I wanted to write a Lance redemption story. Hopefully you guys like it.**

 **Side Note: This story takes place in a separate AU from Aftermath. So Lance and Becky are still together (at least temporarily) in this story. And yes, Astrid appears in this too. But it's not until later.**

 **Disclaimer: I only own my OCs. All other rights go to the original owners of the film.**

* * *

 _Come on Lance, you can do this,_ Lance thought, as he walked up to his grandfather's mansion. _Your landlord's going to beat your ass if you don't pay the rent, and you weren't even supposed to be doing your last job._ _Just suck up your pride and ask him._

Lance didn't really like to admit that I came from a wealthy family. No one really believed him. Not that he could blame them. It was hard to associate a punk-rock jackass like him with someone like Howard Vaughn. One of the richest animals he knew; with his wealth seconding that of Nana Noodleman. A porcupine who was a well known chef; owning two of the state's best restaurants, and running his own catering company. And a porcupine who Lance hope would give him a job, because he has had some trouble holding down a steady one, and Becky was more interested in shopping than working. So now he knows how Ash felt when he did the exact same thing to her.

Pressing the button on the intercom to get his grandfather's attention, he took a step back so the camera that was on the buzzer could face him, and not get full view of his nose like the last time he visited.

"Let me guess," his grandfather's voice said. "You were an ass hat who cheated on his girlfriend, saw her show her true talent on TV and realized you made too huge of a mistake to be taken back by her; got kicked around the last few months by not being able to hold down a steady job. And now you come crawling here because you want money, because the girl you cheated on your ex with is pregnant."

"You got three out of four right," he said, putting his hands in his pockets. "I need work. And kids are the last thing on my mind thank you very much."

"And what makes you think I'll hire you?" Howard asked. "And don't say it's because you're my grandson. You're my family, and I love you. But I already fell for that "because we're family and you love me" crap twice with your dad and your brother."

"Because it's only temporary until my music career takes off," he said, making Howard snort in an attempt to hold in a laugh. "I'm being serious."

"Lance, I've read the songs you wrote. They're horrible," he said, still chuckling. "That Ashley girl you cheated on had better talent than you."

"Don't remind me," he said, rolling my eyes. "And she prefers to be called Ash by the way."

"You still didn't give me a reason to hire you," Howard said.

"Because I refuse to move back in with mom and dad. They'll just compare me to Noodleman," he said.

"Nana is an accomplished actress and singer from her days at the theatre. Why wouldn't they compare your sorry ass to her?"

"I wasn't talking about Nana, grandpa," he said into the intercom. "I was talking about Eddie. Mom and dad make him out to be some sort of successful business man, when he lives twenty-five feet from his parents back door. And believe me, I know. I cleaned the pool."

"Yeah, I know. Nana told me about that," Howard said, remembering to a few days ago when it was discovered that Lance had been cleaning the Noodleman's pool because Eddie was too lazy to do so. "But he at least has a job. Still does not give me a reason to hire you."

"Hire me, or I'm going to stand outside blasting rock music."

"Please," he scoffed. "You can do better than that. The cops would show up and have you in handcuffs before you can play the first chord to whatever bullshit song you decide to play."

"Grandpa, come on," he said, getting fed up with his grandfather's refusing to hire him. "The last time I asked you for anything was seven years ago when I wanted that skateboard. I never asked for anything else since then, and I am willingly coming here to ask for a job somewhat in person. Unlike my dad and Ricky, I am willing to try, and not give up halfway through."

"Oh, if only you could have been this way with Ashley," Howard sighed.

"Grandpa," he said.

"Okay fine. I'll consider it," he said, making Lance relax. "I'll see if I have any positions open at the catering company you can help out on. And _if_ I hire you, I expect you to not dress like that."

"I don't have any dress clothes," Lance said, taking his hand out of his pocket to brush some dirt off of his shirt and jeans.

"Then I suggest you buy some, and do a load of laundry while you're at it," Howard said, the scribbling of his pen audible through the speaker on the other end. "I'll call you in a week. And don't go blowing up my phone if I don't call you, that's the last thing I need."

"Bye Lance," his grandmother, Vivian, called in the background before Howard turned off the intercom.

Turning away from the door to go home, Lance walked away from the mansion, and looked over his shoulder to look at it fully. Hopefully one day he could get a house like this, prove to Ash that he was not talentless. But then again, he didn't give her a chance to show him her full talent, and look where that got him.

Catching the bus to go home, he sat down, and rode the bus up to the Moon Theatre since his apartment building was a few blocks away from there, and saw the entire block crowded with animals because they were holding auditions for the next show. And when he walked around to the front of the line because he was just passing by, he saw his one neighbor, Ozzie, a wheelchair bound ocelot; trying to get up the front steps of the theatre. But his back wheels caught, and he fell backwards.

Rushing over to help Ozzie because Lance wasn't that big of an asshole, he lifted him into the wheelchair, and helped him inside, and onto the stage because there was another set of stairs there too.

"Thanks for the help Lance," he said.

"No problem," he said, helping Ozzie up the last step. "Good luck out there."

"Wait, aren't you going to audition?" Ozzie asked, as Lance turned to leave.

Turning to face the ocelot, Lance glanced backstage, and saw Ash talking with a gorilla wearing a leather jacket; the two of them making brief eye contact for a second before she turned her back to him.

"It's probably best that I don't," he said. "Ash is still kind of mad at me."

"Maybe she won't be if you talk things out with her," Ozzie said before Johnny came out and threw Lance out of the building.

""Maybe she won't be mad if you talk things out with her"," he mocked, getting up from the sidewalk. "That's if I can talk to her without getting thrown out of the building."

Brushing off the dirt from his clothes, he flipped Johnny the bird, and walked away; going back to his apartment building and going upstairs to avoid his landlord who was currently waiting for him with his back turned.

He really hoped Howard would hire him. Because he really needed the money. Sure, he had a roof over his head; but he didn't really have that much to go off of. All he had in his apartment was a very old, dated couch that was falling apart, an old bed with a shitty mattress and a box spring that sent coils into his back all the time, a refrigerator that barely worked half the time, and one of the world's shittiest TVs. That was it.

Sighing, he went into his apartment, and quickly checked to see if the refrigerator was still working before he got a soda...which was lukewarm because the damn thing shut off on him again.

"And Becky wonders why I constantly bug her for food," he said, knowing he couldn't keep a lot of perishables in that fridge because it didn't work. Which was why most of his main diet consisted of protein bars and junk food. And he had been saving up the cash from his last job of cleaning the pool to buy a new guitar. But given the circumstances, he may just want to use that to buy a new refrigerator.

Feeling his phone go off in his pocket, he looked down at the screen, and saw an up close picture of a platypus's bill. Which was his personalized picture for his friend Artie because the damn platypus couldn't take a selfie to save his life.

"What is it Artie?" he asked, taking a sip of his lukewarm soda.

"Guess what today is?" Artie said in a sing-song tone, leaving Lance to look at his calendar and realize it was Artie's twenty-first birthday.

"Oh sorry," he hissed. "I can't go...Becky's not feeling very well."

"Oh, that's too bad," Artie said. "Well, tell her I said to get better soon. And we'll catch up some other time."

"Okay," he said. "Bye Artie."

Hanging up his phone, Lance sighed, and checked to see where he could get a cheap, yet functional refrigerator. Because as much as he loved his friend Artie, Lance didn't want to go to his party. Mainly because Artie was also a mutual friend between him and Ash, and there was a ninety percent chance Ash was going to be there. So Lance just wanted to avoid her.

Giving up on finding a refrigerator at the moment, he went to his room, and laid down for a nap; one of the springs shooting up and jabbing him right in the side.

"Son of a bitch!"

* * *

 **Hopefully you guys like this. R &R.**


	2. Chapter 2

**R &R.**

* * *

 _Damn you Pogo,_ Lance thought, as he threw up in the toilet in the Noodleman mansion.

After countless hours of searching for the cheapest refrigerator he could find, Lance gave up because he either couldn't find one within his price range, or one that functioned if it was. So he called up Artie, who knew he had lied to him earlier, and went to the party. Which wasn't even a party, it was a marathon of some new drama TV series called "Secrets of Khan". And don't ask Lance what the show was about, because he passed out on the couch before the first episode loaded in. Only to be woken up by Artie's roommate Pogo, a dingo who has some...questionable motives, so to speak; and who wanted Lance to do shots of tequila with him and Artie since it was Artie's twenty-first birthday, meaning he was legally able to drink. And although Lance had drank underage before, he refused because there was a good chance Pogo put something in the drinks, and he was tired because of his bed. But then Pogo forced the shot down his throat.

And things went bad.

After swallowing the shot, Lance knew Pogo had put something in the tequila, because he blacked out and woke up in the Noodleman house with a _huge_ hangover. Thankfully the Noodlemans were out of town, and Eddie wasn't home either; so he could just grab Artie and go once he was able to leave the bathroom.

Spitting out the bile in his mouth, Lance made sure to hide any evidence that he was in there, and went downstairs to get Artie; finding a glass of bubbling liquid on the table next to the sliding glass door, and a note from Artie.

 _Trust me, it helps with the hangover.~ Artie_

Drinking the liquid to hopefully get rid of the pounding in his skull, he walked out onto the back patio, and walked down the small flight of stairs to the pool to see a bunch of drunken animals laying either in or on pool floats, and a very familiar looking platypus swimming under the water to save any phones that had falling out of one's pocket.

"What happened last night?" he asked, as Artie came up, holding a used...thing...between his thumb and forefinger.

"No idea," he said, as Lance grabbed a loose branch from the bush beside him and took the used rubber from his platypus friend; only to put it back on the bush. "All I remember is taking that shot of tequila, and the next thing I know; I'm in the pool house passed out on the couch with some hoochie."

"What makes you say it was a hoochie?" Lance asked, as the pool house door opened, and a bunch of weed smoke billowed out; two white tiger girls dressed like hoochies stumbling out in bikini tops and jean bootie shorts that were so short they looked more like underwear. "Never mind."

"How's the hangover cure working out for ya?" Artie asked, hopping out of the pool.

"Working faster than anything I've tried in the past," Lance said, finishing his drink, and turning back towards the mansion. "Come on. Let's get out of here before someone sees us."

"It might be a little late for that," Artie said, hearing a car pull up out front.

"Shit!"

Running across the back yard, and tripping over a few drunken animals, Lance jumped the back wall into the next yard, and saw Artie struggling to pull himself over the wall, with his clothes clenched in his bill when he looked back; making Lance go back and hoist him over the wall before he parkoured himself back over the wall, and ran with Artie out of the other guy's yard.

"Artie, I think it's time you got rid of Pogo as a roommate," he said, as they bolted down the street.

"Don't remind me," he said, pulling his pants on as they ran.

* * *

 **~Later that day~**

"Lance, you have really got to get some new furniture," Becky said, as she tried to get out from the couch because it broke and her butt fell into the hole. "I'm stuck."

"Sorry, I should have warned you about that," Lance said, pulling his girlfriend out from the sofa. "I need to get a lot of new stuff."

"And you can start with a new apartment," Becky said, fishing her purse out form the cushions, as Lance went back to the bathroom to take a shower. "This place is falling apart, it smells, and it's dirty."

"Becky, you were the one who told me to get out of your apartment," he called, turning on the water, and hearing the pipes creak and groan for a few minutes before the showerhead fell off, and landed at his feet. Becky watching from the doorway, as brown, rusty water came flying out into his face. "Ah! Turn it off! Turn it off!"

"Lance," Vivian called from the other room. "Are you here? I would have knocked but the door was open."

"I'll be out in a minute," he called, squeezing past the water, and shutting the shower off. "Thanks for the help, Becky."

"You're welcome," she said, making him roll his eyes, and put his clothes back on before going out to the other room to meet up with his grandmother.

"Hey Grammy," he said, giving his grandmother a hug; Vivian wrinkling her nose because Lance hadn't showered in a while, and there was a good chance the water that sprayed him in the bathroom was fifty to sixty percent sewage. "What's going on?"

"I was just stopping by to see if your brother's old uniform for the catering company fit you," she said, giving Lance the bag in her hand. "Although now I just want to take you home so you can get a decent shower. You smell putrid."

"Yeah, sorry about that. My shower's busted," he said, giving her a sheepish smile and trying not to be arrogant. Because Vivian may seem like a sweet old porcupine in her late sixties, and she is; but she was also still capable of whooping someone's ass if she wanted to. So Lance had to watch his attitude around her and Howard. "And thanks for the clothes. I'll try them on later."

"I'd rather you try them on now so I can see for myself that they fit," she said, crossing her arms in annoyance.

"Okay," he said, going to his room, and trying on his brother's old uniform; which was a very stark contrast from his usual black and blue clothes, because it was a pair of grey pants with a white dress shirt, a grey vest, and a lavender colored tie with black dress shoes. Stepping back out to show his grandmother how it looked, because Becky had already left.

"Hmm," Vivian hummed, looking her grandson over with a critical look before she pulled out a tape measure, and measured his waist; which made Lance tense up because he was ticklish there. "Looks like I'm going to have to take these pants in a little bit at the waist. When was the last time you had a decent meal?"

"Not for a while," he said.

"That would explain why you're so thin," she said, putting her tape measure away.

"Hey, did grandpa come up with a decision on whether or not to hire me yet?" he asked. "Because I kind of need the money for some new furniture. My refrigerator's shit, and my couch is falling apart.

"He still has to decide," she said, licking her thumb, and wiping away a smudge of dirt on her grandson's cheek. "Why don't you get changed, and come home with me? You can take a decent shower, and get some good food into you."

"Really?" he asked, his face lighting up at the offering of food because he was pretty hungry. "Thanks Grammy. You're the best."

* * *

 **~Meanwhile~**

"Miss Vaughn, you have a call on line two," the panther said, walking into the young porcupine's trailer. The porcupine in question pulling on a green dress for a photo shoot in a few minutes.

"Can you take that? I have a shoot to get to," the porcupine said, moving her quills out of her face.

"It's a woman named Nana Noodleman," the panther said, making the porcupine let out a disgruntled grunt before she picked up the call on her bluetooth.

"I am not going to bother being all formal and polite with you, Noodleman. This better be good."

"Astrid, darling. It's wonderful to see you're still acting," Nana said, as Astrid pulled on a pair of black strappy sandals with jewels on them, and left her trailer. "How are things with the show?"

"They're going good. What do you want?" she said, getting into the car that was supposed to be taking her to the shoot.

"There is a dinner banquet being held at Mallory Hall. It's to celebrate the reopening of a theatre owned by my grandson's friend. And you are formally invited, if you want to attend."

"Yeah, sorry," Astrid said. "I'm going to have to answer that with a big fat "No". I'm fifteen, and don't really have a say in anything. My parents find out I'm invited to this, they're going to want to go too, then Ricky, then the Vaughn family ruins the entire evening."

"Which is why I'm calling you directly," Nana said, as Astrid fixed her eyeliner in the car. "You are the only one in your family who won't ruin the entire evening for everyone."

"That's not true," Astrid said, putting the dark pencil away. "Lance isn't that bad."

"Astrid, and forgive me for saying this, this is in no way polite for a lady like myself. But you're brother is an asshole who doesn't give two shits, and will just spend most of the evening complaining. Not to mention, your parents disowned him a long time ago."

"So?" she asked. "What does that have to do with anything? He may be a jackass, but that doesn't mean he'll ruin the evening."

"I'd prefer if it was only you who went," Nana said.

"Fine," she said, picking her nose, and wiping it off on the seat. "I'll consider it."

"Thank you," Nana said. "It's greatly appreciated."

Hanging up on the call, Astrid sighed, and moved a quill out of her face to make sure she looked perfect for the shoot. Her eyes catching her reflection in the rear view mirror before she made an outgoing call to Mandy, the panther.

"Mandy, what's my schedule look like for next week?"

* * *

 **R &R.**


	3. Chapter 3

**R &R.**

* * *

"I can't believe this," Howard said, looking out the window in his office. "Why are you bringing him into my home?"

"Howard, it's just for a few days until you hire him," Vivian said, as she took in the waistline on a dress for her friend's granddaughter. "The boy doesn't even have a working refrigerator. I couldn't let him go hungry. He was living on protein bars and potato chips."

"So you said he could move in with us?" he asked, turning to face is wife.

"It's just for a few days," she said, snipping the thread with a pair of scissors. "Besides, what's the big deal? It's not like we're expecting anyone important."

"Astrid's coming to visit. Nana invited her to the banquet next week," he said.

"Howard, Astrid loves her brother. She's not going to care," Vivian said, as Howard poured himself a drink.

"It's not her I'm worried about, Vivian. It's the rest of them. William and Veronica already compare Lance to Eddie, and the man still lives in his parents' back yard, and if they find out he's living here, they're going to assume he's kissing my ass to inherit my money," he said.

"Which he is not," Vivian said, fixing any loose threads on the seams of the dress. "He may be an ass who's desperate for money. But he's not going to get it by kissing yours. You at least got the point across to him that fame and fortune is achieved through hard work."

"But if he's anything like his father, he's going to try taking the easy way out," Howard said, taking another sip from his drink. "Speaking of Lance, he's been in the bathroom for over an hour. Did he drown up there or something?"

"All I had to do was say "bath bombs", and that was all he needed to hear," Vivian said, pushing a quill out of her face.

"Again, I state that he has been up there for over an hour," Howard said. "Go check on him."

"You do it. I'm busy," she said, turning the dress right side out again to look at it.

"Fine," he said, setting his drinking glass down on the desk, and leaving his office to go upstairs to one of the bathrooms on the second floor; searching two of them before finding Lance in the third bathroom, closest to the stairs...passed out asleep in the bath tub because he was so relaxed.

"Lance, wake up," he said, waking his grandson up.

"Sorry grandpa," he yawned, stretching and letting all the muscles in his back let out a very loud pop. "I was tired."

"I can see that," Howard said. "Why don't you get out of the tub and go take a nap for a little while? I'll wake you up later when dinner's ready."

"O-Okay," Lance yawned, getting out of the tub, and letting the water out; Howard handing him a towel, and going back downstairs while Lance went to his room, and put on a pair of sweat pants, and an old T-shirt before face planting onto the bed, and inhaling a strong scent of lavender; which only made Lance think of Ash more, because she had a lavender scented perfume she would wear for those 'special nights'. And it only made him feel more like a dick, because for the two years he ad Ash were together, all he did was take advantage of her kindness, treat her like dirt, and just be the world's biggest asshole to her. And all because he blamed her for his parents kicking him out when he was in high school, when she did nothing but love and care for him; he took his problems out on her, and it was a decision he regretted now, because he missed her so badly

 _Remember Lance,_ he thought to himself, as he rolled over onto his side. _Just because she's letting you stay doesn't make it permanent. Just wait until grandpa hires you, and move back into your apartment so you don't go burdening them too._

Sighing, he took his pillow, and hugged it to his chest.

* * *

 **~Meanwhile~**

"How is he?" Vivian asked, as Howard came back down the stairs.

"Tired. He fell asleep in the tub. I told him to lay down for a while, while I made dinner."

"It's such a shame," she said, as Howard stepped off the staircase. " _We_ spent seventeen years doing _his_ parents' job of teaching him how to live his life _without_ asking you for money. And yet, here he is at nineteen years old, broke and almost homeless."

"Hey, don't look at it that way," Howard said, taking his wife's standpoint to be supportive, and reassuring. "You and I started out in the same boat as him: crappy apartment, very little money, struggling to find work. And now we're living a life of luxury; so to speak. And at least Lance has enough nerve ask for a job rather than ask me for money."

"But you said it yourself, he's going to try and take the easy way out," she said.

"Vivian, he's William's son. He's been doing that since he was a kid," Howard said, heading for the kitchen. "Why do you think he got so interested in music at a young age?"

"Because it looked easy to him, and it was for him. He played multiple instruments."

"Exactly," Howard said. "Which is exactly why I'm hiring him to be the entertainment for next week's banquet."

"What?" she asked, following after her husband. "Howard, you cannot be serious."

"Why not?"

"Remember what happened last time we were at that banquet hall?" she asked.

"Don't remind me," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose at the horrifying memory of his son and daughter in law crashing a wedding reception at the very same place the banquet was being held, and Lance's brother Ricky destroying all the instruments the band was playing. "But we replaced everything that was broken. And you just said so in the other room, Lance played multiple instruments; instruments he learned because I paid for his lessons after Veronica signed him up for dance lessons."

"Howard, please," Vivian begged. "You and I both know they'll crash the party again, and you know how William and Veronica are with Lance. They'll compare him to Eddie, and make him feel like an ass."

"Grandpa!" a voice called, using a mock accent. "I'm here."

"Oh no," Howard said, knowing that was Ricky, as he turned to face his eldest grandson, and the girl he had with him who was attacking his neck with kisses. "What do you want Ricky? And who the hell is she?"

"This is Becky, I need a room. Goodbye," Ricky said, using his normal voice, and dragging Becky up the stairs, as Vivian heaved a heavy sigh.

"What's with the sigh?" Howard asked, looking at his wife. "It's not the first time he's done that. Why do you think he's twenty-two with five kids belonging to three different women?"

"I'm sighing because that was Lance's girlfriend Ricky just took up the stairs," Vivian said, looking over at her husband to see Howard's face drop.

"I hope he knows I am not going to protect him when Lance finds out," he said.

"He's still going to use you as a shield honey," Vivian said, turning to go outside. "I'll be out by the pool if you need me. Give me a call when dinner's ready."

"Can you get the rice out of the cupboard on the way out, please?" he asked, making Vivian stop to come back, and get the rice out from the cupboard above her head. "Thank you."

"Oh, you are very welcome," she said, giving her husband a peck on the lips before going outside.

* * *

 **R &R.**


	4. Chapter 4

**R &R.**

* * *

"Lance, slow down," Howard said, pulling the plate of food away from Lance to keep him from scarfing it down too quickly.

"Come on, grandpa. I'm starving," he whined, trying to take the plate back, as Howard blocked him with his arm.

"I know, but I don't want you to eat it too fast," Howard said, giving the plate back to his grandson, and watching Lance eat it a lot slower than he did a second ago; because Lance managed to scarf down half of the plate in five seconds before he pulled it away from him. "Wait here, I have to go get your grandma and brother."

Hearing Lance almost choke on his food, Howard patted his grandson's back, as he coughed, and spat out the food in his mouth onto a napkin.

"Ricky's here?" he asked, as Ricky walked by behind him to let Becky out.

"Don't worry, he won't be staying long," Howard said, as Ricky came into the dining room.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, looking at Lance as he shoveled another spoonful of food into his mouth.

"Eating," he said over a mouthful of food. "So, how've you been? I haven't seen or heard from you in over two years."

"I've been around," Ricky said, getting some food. "I've become an accomplished film director."

"You directed a crappy porn film that no one wanted to see," Vivian said, coming into the dining room, and noticing the amount of food on Lance's plate because he had gotten a second plate. "Lance, did you get a second plate?"

"No..." Lance said, trying to act innocent although his face and eyes clearly said otherwise.

"I told you he was hungry," Vivian said to Howard, as Lance continued to eat.

"Why do you think I made enough to feed more than four porcupines?" he said, getting his own serving. "Oh, and Lance, one of your friends was here earlier. A platypus asking if you could come out to play."

"That was probably Artie," Lance said, trying not to laugh. Because although Artie was two years older, and a lot more mature than Lance; he would be the one ask that question if he wanted Lance to come outside. "Did he say what he wanted? Or did you scare him off?"

"You honestly think I'm going to let a stranger into my home?" Howard asked. "I may be old and forgetful sometimes. But I'm not an idiot."

"You let him in," he said, pointing at Ricky with his fork. "He's a stranger."

"Lance," Vivian scolded, looking at her grandson, and silently telling him to behave.

"Hey grandpa, did you come up with a decision on the job yet?" he asked, trying to change the subject from the matter that he just not so subtly, called Howard an idiot.

"Actually, yes. I did," Howard said, making Ricky look at him. "You'll be-"

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold on a minute. You're hiring him at the restaurant?"

"No, I'm hiring him at the catering company," Howard said, making Ricky laugh. "Is that funny, Richard?"

"Oh, he used your real name. You're in trouble," Lance said.

"Lance, eat your food," Vivian said.

"Granddad, have you even seen Lance? He's going to be like me and dad. He'll give up after a month."

"I will not," Lance said with his mouthful.

"Don't speak with your mouthful," Howard and Vivian both said before turning back to Ricky.

"And for your information, he's working the entertainment," Howard said.

"I am?" Lance asked, his mouth still full of food.

"At least for this week," he said, eating a bite of his food. "The band Nana hired bailed on her the second they heard our family name after something _someone we know_ did last year."

"Can we please get past that?" Ricky said. "So what? I wrecked a few instruments. It's not like it's the end of the world."

"You racked up $100,000 dollars in damages because the instruments weren't the only things you broke," Howard said. "And Lance, just because I'm allowing you to do the entertainment does not mean you're doing your own songs. You're doing cover songs with your sister."

"Oh lovely," Lance said, rolling his eyes because he did not want to share the spotlight with Astrid again.

"It's just for one night, Lance. You'll live," Vivian said, getting her food.

* * *

 **~Meanwhile~**

"Well, that was fun," Astrid said, as Mandy tried to fix her motorcycle because the brakes gave out on them, and they were miles away from the next city. "Think you can fix it?"

"Not without a mechanic," Mandy said, standing up and wiping her paws off with a bandana she had in her pocket. "What I'd like to know is how my brakes got so worn out when I just replaced them last month."

"Yeah," Astrid said, not making eye contact with the big cat because she was the reason the brakes wore down. "What a mystery that is."

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop using my motorcycle?" she said, pulling on the younger porcupine's ear.

"Ow! Knock it off!" Astrid yelled, getting the big cat's paw off of her as a truck came up the road. "Oh hey, here comes someone. Show some leg, maybe he'll pull over."

"You know, if your parents weren't paying me to keep you safe. I would so throw you in front of that truck," she said, flagging down the driver; who was a teen gorilla wearing a green shirt and leather jacket. "Hi, sorry to bother you. But my motorcycle broke down. Do you think you can give us a ride into town?"

"Sure," the gorilla said in a British accent before he got out of the truck to put her motorcycle in the back.

"Thank you so much," she said, as he lifted the bike into the bed of the truck.

"Yeah, thanks," Astrid said. "Saves us from having to wait for Triple A."

"Oh hey, looks like there's only two seats. Sorry," Mandy said, hopping into the truck, and shutting the door.

"Hey! You bitch, I can totally squeeze. Open the door!"

"I'll give you fifty dollars now if you drive off without her," she said, offering the gorilla a fifty dollar bill as he got back in.

"I'm sorry, I can't. It's kind of against my morals," he said.

"$100?"

"Still no," he said, reaching across her to let Astrid in.

"$300, and that's my final offer," she said.

"Alright," he said, taking the money, and speeding off down the road with Astrid clinging to the tailgate.

"Mandy!"

* * *

 **R &R.**


	5. Chapter 5

**R &R.**

* * *

"So you live in this place?" Mandy asked, as Johnny fixed the brakes on her motorcycle in the shop.

"Yeah, my apartment's upstairs," he said, wiping his hands off. "And the brakes are all fixed. I also fixed a leak in the fuel line, so it should last a little while longer on the road now."

"Thanks again for fixing it," she said, reaching for her wallet. "How much should I pay you?"

"Oh, you don't have to. The $300 you gave me earlier should be enough to cover the cost," Johnny said.

"Mandy, the boy's a cutie and a sweetie; take him now while you have a chance," Astrid said to her before Mandy smacked her on the head. "Ow!"

"Shut up," she said, grabbing the keys to her motorcycle. "And thank you again for fixing my bike, Johnny. Maybe we can hang out some time."

"'Maybe we can hang out sometime?' That's your pickup line?" Astrid asked. "Sheesh, no wonder you can't keep a-"

"Put your helmet on!" Mandy said, smashing Astrid's helmet onto her head so hard that it covered her eyes.

"I can't see," she said, trying to get the helmet off while Johnny gave Mandy his number.

"Hey Johnny," another crested porcupine said, riding into the shop on a skateboard, as Astrid finally got her helmet off. "What the hell are you doing? Two hotties just showed up at the skate park, and one has your name written all over her...Although I see you got two hotties here. Been holding out of me Johnny boy?"

"No, Spencer. They're just passing through," Johnny said, seeing the porcupine go right over to Astrid.

"So, come here often?" Spencer said.

"She is off limits," Johnny said, pulling him away by the back of his shirt.

"Charming," Mandy commented, putting her helmet on. "Come on, Astrid. Let's get to your grandfather's before your parents start making calls."

"Wait, Mandy. You forgot your bandana!" Johnny called after her before the two left in a cloud of dust.

"What the hell man?" Spencer said. "That was Astrid Vaughn. _The_ Astrid Vaughn; Howard Vaughn's granddaughter, heir to the Vaughn estate. Marcie's actress in Secrets of Khan. _She_ is my dream girl."

" _She_ is fifteen," Johnny said. "Wait three years, then flirt with her."

"But the opportunity-"

"Spencer," Johnny said, making his friend stomp his foot and whine.

* * *

 **~Meanwhile~**

"Alright, alright. I am sorry I caused you bodily harm," Lance called through the bathroom door.

"Fuck you!" Ricky called, as Lance tried not to laugh at his brother's pain. Because shortly after dinner, Howard had asked Lance to go to the store since he usually made a run there every other month, but had a lot of work to do. And while Lance was on his way out the door, Ricky asked him to get him some gummy bears. And Lance would have done that, had Ricky not added the line of "And something pretty for yourself"; so, to get back at his older brother, Lance got a bag of regular gummy bears, and a bag of sugar free ones. And you could guess which ones he gave to his brother.

"Lance, I really wish you and your brother would not do that to each other," Vivian said to him as he entered the kitchen for the regular gummy bears.

"Why should I be nice to him?" he asked. "He's a dick to everyone else that he meets, not to mention he's still married to his first two wives."

"Not to mention having sex with your girlfriend," she said under her breath.

"What?"

"Nothing," she said, taking a handful of gummy bears. "I have work to get done. Make sure to check on your brother in a few minutes to make sure he's still alive."

"Okay," he said, popping another gummy bear into his mouth, and going out to the living room to watch the Secrets of Khan show that Artie had been watching the night before. And he was shocked to see that his own sister played the part of the main character Marcie. "Well, I'll be damned."

Checking the clock on his phone, he paused the show and got Ricky some water so he wouldn't die. And when he made his way into the bathroom, Ricky was still glued to the toilet.

"Why did you do this to me?"

"No one said you had to eat the entire bag," he said, putting the water _just_ out of his brother's reach. "See ya."

"You dick!"

Going back downstairs, Lance went back to the living room to continue watching the show. And as usual, he was more jealous that his sister was more successful than him at a young age; she could sing better than him, act better than him. The only she couldn't do better than him was dance, but when she did, his mom would pull him aside and let her take the spotlight.

"Grandpa," Astrid's voice called from the front of the house. "I'm here."

"This place is huge," another voice said, as Lance paused the show again and went to go greet his sister; who immediately tackled him with a hug.

"Astrid, easy on the hugs," he said, getting his sister off of him.

* * *

 **R &R. And before anyone asks; no, I am not shipping Johnny with Mandy. But that does not mean that Astrid will not try to play matchmaker**


	6. Chapter 6

**R &R.**

* * *

"Gee, Ricky," Lance said to his brother while they sat in a holding cell at the police station. Because Ricky, still recovering from Lance's gummy bear prank the night before, decided it would be a good idea to go out and party. Which was in fact, not a good idea seeing as how Ricky got so drunk that he started streaking, and ran down the street butt naked. And when Lance tried to get him before the cops arrived, he ended up running right into the police by smashing into their car. Long story short, they both got arrested. "Great job getting us both arrested."

Hearing Ricky groan because his stomach was still bothering him, Lance rolled his eyes and laid down to try to get some more sleep since Howard and Vivian were probably already asleep, and Astrid wouldn't want to make the trip to get them on Mandy's motorcycle. But Ricky decided to lay down on top of him, and breathe down his neck.

"Hey..." Ricky said. "You asleep?"

"Get off!" he shouted, pushing his brother to the floor about a split second before Ricky vomited up the alcohol he had consumed.

Sighing, Lance rolled away from his brother, and tried to sleep again. But Ricky started sobbing hysterically, and woke him back up.

"Can this get any worse?" he asked out loud before the guards opened the door to the cell.

"Okay guys, you're free to go," the rhinoceros said. "Your wives are here?"

"Wait, what?" he asked before Ash and Ricky's first wife Valerie appeared in the doorway.

"Let's go," Ash said, pulling him out by his ear.

"Ow! Ash, take it easy. You're going to rip my ear off if you keep pulling," he said, as Ash pulled him out to Johnny's truck and shoved him into the passenger's seat.

"Drive," she barked at Johnny before he pulled away from the station. The three of them sitting in a very tense silence for the majority of the ride before Lance turned to look at Ash.

"My wife?" he asked.

"The guard just assumed," she said, before she turned to face him and started hitting his shoulder. "And what the hell were you thinking? Getting arrested like that, and make me have to come get you at two in the morning. We were both sleeping!"

"I'm sorry!" he said, trying to get her to stop hitting him before he realized that Johnny didn't have a shirt on. "Uh..."

"Again, we were both asleep," she said.

"How'd you guys even know I was arrested anyway?"

"Astrid called me," Ash said. "You didn't come back, and your grandparents were worried sick."

"Well it's not my fault Ricky went streaking down the middle of the street," he said, crossing his arms with a huff. "And you didn't have to get me. I could have asked my grandparents to pick us up in the morning."

"With what money?" she said.

"Uh, Lance," Johnny said.

"Make a right here," he said, pointing to the right so Johnny could make a right hand turn into Howard's neighborhood.

"Wait, your grandparents live here?" Ash asked.

"Yeah, my grandfather's about as rich as Nana Noodleman," he said as Johnny pulled up to Howard's house. "We're here."

"Your grandparents are this wealthy, and you didn't tell me?" Ash asked. "Why didn't you ask them for money when we needed it?"

"Because Howard doesn't just give money away," he said, getting out of the truck. "Not to his family at least. Thanks for the ride home, Johnny. And I'm sorry for having to drag you out of bed."

"Don't worry about it," Johnny said.

"Hey, what about me?!" Ash said.

"Good night Ash," he said, slamming the door in her face.

"Asshole!" she shouted through the window as Johnny pulled away, and Lance hopped over the front gate to walk up the driveway. Getting pulled into the mansion by Howard, and getting yelled at for getting arrested as Valerie gave Ricky back. And almost immediately, Howard switched his anger to Ricky since he was the reason the boys got arrested in the first place.

Well, at least it couldn't get any worse than this.

* * *

 **R &R.**


End file.
